Accepting Parents Boost Mental Health of LGBT Teens

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Parents who accept and advocate for their non-heterosexual teens
may be protecting them from depression and ill health as adults,
suggests a new study on families with lesbian, gay, bisexual and
transgender (LGBT) children.

Specific parental behaviors, such as advocating for their
children when they are mistreated due to their LGBT
identity and supporting their teen's gender expression, were
linked to a lower likelihood of depression, substance abuse,
suicidal thoughts and suicide attempts in early adulthood, the
researchers detail in the November issue of the Journal of Child
and Adolescent Psychiatric Nursing.

Extra support for LGBT teens may be warranted. Another study
reported today (Dec. 6), this one in the January 2011 issue of
the journal Pediatrics, suggests that LGB teens are more likely
to be mistreated in the form of punishment from school
authorities, police and the courts. Past research has also shown
lesbian and gay teens are
more likely to be bullied than their peers.

Rather than highlight the negative repercussions that some LGBT
youth suffer, the findings "offer a gateway to hope for LGBT
youth and families that struggle with how to balance deeply held
religious and personal values with love for their LGBT children,"
said study researcher Dr. Caitlin Ryan, director of the Family
Acceptance Project at San Francisco State University.

Ryan and colleagues analyzed data collected from 245 white and
Latino LGBT young adults, ages 21 to 25, who were open about
their sexual orientation to at least one parent or primary
caregiver during adolescence. Participants rated how often they
had experienced each of 55 positive behaviors from parents on a
scale from never to many times.

From the results, the participants were split into low, moderate
and high acceptance groups. Results showed that LGBT youth with
highly accepting families have much higher levels of self-esteem
and social support in young adulthood.

Half as many participants from highly accepting families reported
suicidal thoughts in the past six months compared with those who
reported low acceptance (18.5 percent versus 38.3 percent). While
nearly 31 percent of the high-acceptance group reported suicide
attempts, nearly 57 percent of the low-acceptance indicated the
same.

Participants who had low family acceptance as teens were more
than three times as likely to report both suicidal
thoughts and suicide attempts compared with those who reported
high levels of family acceptance.

In addition, families in that study that showed
high religious involvement were more likely to have low
acceptance of LGBT children. There was no link found between
family acceptance and participants' risky sexual behaviors over
the prior six months.

The researchers note that since LGBT individuals are a somewhat
hidden population, they can't say whether their sample would be
representative of the general population. In addition, further
research should include more ethnic diversity to determine any
cultural differences in family reactions to their children's LGBT
identities.

"More and more families want to be accepting of their children.
Yet, many families still struggle when a child comes out as
LGBT," said Stephen Russell, president-elect of the Society for
Research on Adolescence and a consultant to the Family Acceptance
Project. "It's essential to have research like this to deeply
understand the ways that families show their acceptance, so that
we can identify how to support families."

According to the Project, supportive behaviors include:
expressing affection when your child tells you or when you learn
that your child is gay or transgender; requiring that other
family members respect your LGBT child; supporting your child's
LGBT identity even though you may feel uncomfortable; welcoming
your child's LGBT friends and partners to your home; and
supporting your child's gender expression.